A Romantic & Really Ridiculous Rhapsody
by SibilantSibyl18
Summary: Draco discovers that against all reason (and textual evidence), he is in love with none other than Ginny Weasley! His heart pounds! His eyes flash! And he writes bad poetry! A warning- most OOC and slight OotP spoilers.
1. Rhapsody In Red

**Disclaimer: _Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling. And I am not she. I would also like to say that I am, in fact, a D/G shipper, and know the glory that is D/G._**

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**A Romantic (& Really Ridiculous) Rhapsody **

_Chapter One: Rhapsody in Red_

It was only after she hexed him that Draco discovered he loved her. Yes, he mocked her family's poverty and Muggle-loving attitudes. Yes, her red hair did clash rather embarrassingly with his own silky white locks. And yes, she did have six brothers who would be more than happy to beat him into a bloody, barely recognizable pulp. 

It was a risk he was willing to take.

Even as he struggled in discomfort with the maddeningly painful hex, he could not stop himself from waxing poetic on her glorious red hair ("like red, red wine"), her fair skin ("as pure as a swan's plumage"), and her petite face ("like an adorable heart-shaped Valentine"). It must be admitted that this last comparison unsettled him slightly—after all, hadn't he humiliated her on Valentine's Day? As Draco searched his memory for images of this adorable creature in her first-year, he felt a fiery ("like her hair," he thought sadly) arrow stab his heart, for the recipient of her ridiculous (but endearingly childish) Valentine was none other than Harry Snotter—er, Potter. 

But that was four years ago, after all, Draco reassured himself. Surely her feelings for Potter fled long ago like a dove to its roost ("she is like a dove," Draco rhapsodized) at the break of day? Had not his own feelings undergone remarkable alteration within the past four minutes, taking him from the most violent hatred to passionate adoration in a mere two-hundred forty seconds? 

She must be wildly in love with him by this time!

Glad to have settled the matter so satisfactorily, Draco succumbed to the pleasures of being under one of _her_ hexes, and reveled in the pain that she caused him, pain that he would willingly suffer for her sake. For was this not a trial of his love? Had she not subjected him to this annoying ordeal for the mere sake of ascertaining the depth of his affection? After all, she had chosen _him_ to hex. Out of all the people she could have hexed, he had been chosen by her. 

She obviously adored him. He was certain.

And to think of her, her face, her hair, her voice, her eyes—was almost more than Draco's throbbing heart could bear. The tone of her voice when she hexed him—wasn't there a soft and caressing note under the obvious frustration she felt at having to hex someone she adored (for the sake of appearances, surely)? And her soft brown eyes gazed almost pityingly down at him as he writhed uncomfortably on the floor. And pity would give way to love, assuming it had not already done so…

Draco was sure of it. 

And yet, after Ginny returned from her ordeal in the Department of Mysteries, Draco was sure she had yet to recognize the greatest mystery of all: love. 

Draco's mind leapt from delightfully tantalizing thought to delightfully tantalizing thought, all centering around the inevitable moment when he would announce his Grand Passion to a bashful and blushing, but delighted, Ginny. He would approach her, his white-blonde head bowed respectfully to her irreproachable maiden virginity, and, with hands folded penitently, he would speak words of love, words of such hypnotic power that she would succumb almost immediately to his supplication and beg him to take her now, _now_, even as they stood together in the Astronomy Tower during the furious winter's rages.  She would then swoon at her own brazenness, of course, and he would catch her in strong, unyielding arms, and hold her to his impassioned breast while refusing her tempting offer. He wrote hackneyed, saccharine compositions idolizing his beloved, and thought them masterpieces of poetic rapture. Draco dreamed of the moment when he would catch Ginny, the Princess, standing on the balcony of her Gryffindor Tower and—

But even Draco's mind could go no further than this, for such was the purity of his love for the adorable Ginny Weasley.

He finished the rest of the year at Hogwarts in a love-induced haze, while fighting to keep his normal icy façade intact, for he could not bear to speak the words of love, the words that would win Ginny Weasley's soul from her breast, just yet. 

**A/N: Please read and review, keeping in mind that this was intended to be a parody. Thank you! **


	2. Rhapsody In Grey

**Disclaimer: _It should not come as a surprise that I do not own Draco, Ginny, or any characters from the Harry Potter series. JKR does. _**

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_Chapter Two: Rhapsody in Grey_

It was a changed Draco that Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy welcomed to Malfoy Manor. 

The change was not apparent, of course—Draco's sonnets were carefully stowed away, disguised as hexes (a fitting tribute, Draco thought), and his careful, cold demeanor well-concealed the slow-burning fire of the boy's first passion.

Draco greeted his mother and father with appropriate reserve, walked up the ornate staircase and through the elaborately decorated halls with a regular, measured stride. 

But once he had dismissed the house-elf, and unpacked his belongings for the summer, Draco could not restrain himself any longer. He raced to his desk and penned a few adoring lines on the glory of Ginny Weasley.

                             _With hair as red as crimson flame-_

_                             And eyes as brown as dragon poo-_

_                             Despite your most unfortunate name-_

_                             The sole cry of my heart is you!_

_                             Your skin, so soft and silky white,_

_                             Reminds me of my own fine hair._

_                             Being hexed by you is a delight-_

_                             You are as cruel as you are fair!_

_                             Remember my impassioned plea_

_                             And give all of yourself to me._

Draco knew he was no Shakespeare, but he was sure there was no way that any woman could resist this tribute to her beauty. But Ginny was so much more than just a woman, he worried. Would she not scorn his poem? Was he perhaps a little too bold in the final couplet? Perhaps he should alter it:

"_Remember my impassioned, but entirely respectful and devoted, plea,"_ was a bit better, but the line was just too long and didn't scan properly. Perhaps "_Remember my impassioned plea/ And run away today with me!" would be more persuasive, but really, Draco didn't have any intention of running away with Ginny. He had no allowance, and once they'd left Britain, he had no idea where he could take them. Love on the rocks was an appealing idea, he admitted, but, for long periods of time, surely not a comfortable one. No, abandoning their families was not a feasible idea._

Draco's worries on that matter were soon truncated when a house elf arrived to announce that his presence would be expected at dinner in half an hour. His worries on a new matter began-- that of concealing his affection from his father. 

Lucius Malfoy would not be amenable to Draco's _amour for the daughter of his Weasley rival._

**A/N: What to do, what to do. Will Lucius see into Draco's heart and realize that he's in love with an enemy (gasp)? Obviously. What else is there to write about… Please Review. **


	3. Rhapsody In Black

**Disclaimer: _All characters belong to JKR. _**

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_Chapter Three: Rhapsody in Black_

Dinner at Malfoy Manor was an elaborate affair, but then, so was everything else at Malfoy Manor. Dressed impeccably in a silk-grey suit that complemented his fathomless silver eyes and silvery white hair (for even love could not prevent him from indulging in his fondness for fine clothes), Draco joined his mother and father at the dinner table.

Dinner went as usual and Draco's façade was apparently a successful one.

The key word in that sentence is "was."

Draco's façade _was successful only before his father began drinking. When Lucius Malfoy began to drink, he began to recount his recent Dark exploits for the benefit of his adoring wife and son. When Lucius Malfoy recounted his recent exploits, he happened to touch upon his unsuccessful task in the Department of Mysteries. When he mentioned the task in the Department of Mysteries, he expressed regret at his failed mission. When he expressed regret at his failed mission, he blamed those who had prevented its realization. When he did this, he mentioned his attempt to destroy Harry Potter and his foolish Gryffindor comrades.  Ginny Weasley was one of those foolish Gryffindor comrades._

Draco was enraged. Of course he had known that his father was one of the Death Eaters involved in the Department of Mysteries incident. And of course he had known that Ginny Weasley was among the Gryffindors who ventured there (this had been the subject of one of his raptures on Ginny). Blinded by love, Draco had not put two and two together. Or if he did, he decided that the answer was not four, but "Ginny!" as all questions seemed to ask for a euphoric affirmation of his love for her. Logic was not Draco's strong suite—at least, not when he was in love with Ginny.

He made a valiant attempt at control, an attempt which went rather well as his parents noticed no more than a slight reddening of his cheeks (which could be attributed to an embarrassment at his father's failure) and a brief flash of fire in his eyes (which could be attributed to anger against Gryffindors in general).

It was when his father mentioned his initiation into the Death Eaters that he finally cracked. Lucius Malfoy had been planning his son's initiation since the moment he learned Narcissa was pregnant. Finally, a son to follow in his dark footsteps, someone he could play Quidditch with and teach Unforgivable Curses to alternately. Someone that the Dark Lord would praise him for, while clapping him on the back with a withered hand and saying, "Fine boy you have there, Lucius."

Draco's response ("but Daddy, I don't think I want to be a Death Eater anymore. Couldn't I just be a teacher like Mummy?") was most unexpected and most unwelcome. Visions of Draco passing out plastic cups filled with grapefruit juice and generic cookies filled Lucius's head, and he rose to his feet in fury. Muttering Dark curses at him as he carried him down the dark corridors by the scruff of his neck, Lucius reached the infamous Malfoy torture chambers (where a record 842 Muggles had breathed their last) and mercilessly threw his son in, despite Draco's cries of, "Teachers prepare the youth of today for the burdens of tomorrow!" and "Teachers don't just teach—they help others to **reach!" **

"And you make me _retch," Lucius replied angrily. "Honestly…"_

Sitting in the dark, dank dungeon where a record number of Muggles had been killed did nothing to help Draco's spirits. In vain, he tried to conjure up a sweet image of Ginny, but to no avail. Draco whispered her name in the darkness of his dungeon, but the whispers faded away, leaving him with nothing but silence. 

Angst was his only solace, and he indulged in it while cursing the Fates that had not only placed him with an evil, murderous demon, but an evil, potential-Ginny-murdering demon. 

The Fates were not unaccustomed to being cursed by a Malfoy (after all, the Malfoys did little else), but, in this instance, took pity on Draco's despairing heart. They could only tolerate a certain amount of angst, and Draco had exceeded his limit, his father's limit, and his mother's limit, for the next twenty years. 

This annoyed them. So they decided to do something about it.

**A/N: Read and review, please. Next (and last) chapter: Ginny makes an appearance.**


	4. Rhapsody In Blue

**Disclaimer: _Any characters you recognize here (namely Draco and Ginny) belong to J. K. Rowling. They are not mine. And "Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore" belongs to REO Speedwagon. But the bad poetry is mine, all mine! Oh, and the chapter of this title is the name of a famous song by Gershwin. _**

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_Chapter Four: Rhapsody in Blue_

**The problem: How can the author engineer a Draco/Ginny reunion?**

**The hypothesis: Given an appropriately harsh environment and a tortured subject in need of healing, if an Angel of Light is added to the equation, then a Draco/Ginny reunion should result.**

**The materials: A broken and moody Draco, cold dark dungeons, an unforgiving father, bad poetry, and a total disregard for Canon.**

**The variable: The Angel of Light.**

It was no more than a simple experiment. 

There was darkness in the dungeons and darkness inside Draco's mind. He was tortured, bruised, broken, and filled with despair against the savagery of Fate. The cold floor against his injured cheek, the dark thoughts within his brain, and the deceit of his own mind made him a perfect subject for the experiment of the Fates. 

All hope was lost to Draco. Ginny, Ginny with her crimson hair and fiery spirit and lovably hurtful hexes was lost beyond all hope to him. Draco would have bashed his head against the walls of the dungeon had he the energy. But that was lost to him as well.

Enter the Angel of Light. 

Even in the darkness, Draco rhapsodized. With a weak and uncertain voice, he plotted the lines of his next poem, scanning them by tapping his fingers against the cold stone floor.

                             _Ginny, Ginny, with your skin of white_

_                             And your crimson lips so fair-_

_                             Ginny, Ginny, you are my delight_

_                             With your wiry, fiery hair._

_                             The littlest weasel is little no more_

_                             But has filled my heart instead_

_                             With my soul, I thee adore_

_                             And I want to take you to be—_

"Don't even think of finishing that line, Draco Malfoy," said a cool voice from the entrance of the dungeon.

Looking up, startled, Draco saw Ginny's slight figure leaning against the door frame. She was glaring at him. 

"Ginny, my love…." Draco hesitated before speaking, but was immediately interrupted.

"Yes, I know, I'm the delight of your eyes, and the sole cry of your heart. It's all very moving—except, perhaps, the comparison to dragon poo," Ginny said, smirking.

"The genius of a poet is beyond the comprehension of mortal power," Draco replied stiffly.

"Yes, I know," Ginny said solemnly. "Don't worry, I understood _you_ perfectly… and I'm sure your father will understand once he reads your poetry as well."

"My father?" Draco's head jerked up; he was sure his father would NOT understand his obsession with Ginny. "Has he read my poet—er, treatises on the nature of hexes, yet?"

"Well, not yet, although I really should give it to him, seeing as it is my duty to hand in incriminating documents of this sort to him…" she said slowly. "As a loyal servant of the Malfoy household, my obedience to your father's wishes is something of a job requirement."

"You? A servant? In my house?"

"It's technically not your house, and I'm a bit more _important_, shall we say, than a servant…" Ginny continued to smirk, an inscrutable expression on her freckled face.

"More than a servant?" Uneasy thoughts began to appear in Draco's mind. "Please tell me you're not—_with_—my father?" Draco suppressed outraged thoughts of Ginny as his father's love-slave, scantily clad, serving beverages to his Death Eater friends at their gatherings.

"Of course I'm –_with—your father, you idiot," Ginny continued exasperatedly. "I __am working for him after all…" She neglected to mention her dual role as spy and general eavesdropper—why bother the boy with useless details? He was obviously very sensitive. And she was right._

Draco began to cry like the dark, tortured, and sensitive man that he was. 

Ginny immediately swooped ("dove-like," Draco thought in his despair-induced haze) towards Draco's still, prone form and began to stroke his hair gently while murmuring the lyrics to REO Speedwagon's "Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore."

While Ginny sang, "And I'm getting closer than I ever thought I might… I can't fight this feeling anymore. I've forgotten what I started fighting for—it's time to bring this ship into the shore, and throw away the oars forever…" a number of thoughts raced through Draco's mind: "This is kind of nice… my heart feels less stony… I feel spiritually _renewed_ and _healed_… wait a second--!"

The irony of the situation struck Draco at the moment—instead of enfolding Ginny in _his strong arms, she was holding him in _hers_. _

Shouldn't his sense of male dignity be outraged at the fact that she was pressing him to her breast and crooning to him like he was some mutant oversized baby?

Shouldn't his pride be injured at his own lack of resistance-- the tears dripping down his pale and bruised cheeks?

Shouldn't he remove himself immediately from her arms and demand that she flush, turn pale, and then swoon, in his muscular arms?

Shouldn't he extricate himself from her clutches, and insist that she stop gently kissing his face—isn't it supposed to be the other way around?

Draco decided that it really didn't matter in the end.

And it was, after all, the end.

The End.

**A/N: Well, that's it. Yes, I know it was rather silly, but I did enjoy writing it, and I hope you enjoyed reading it. Either way, tell me about it! **


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